Before They Were Famous: Knockouts and Divas

Before they were beamed through our television screens in HD as the impeccably presented current WWE Divas and TNA Knockouts, our favorite female wrestlers were either toiling away on the independents or weren’t in the business at all. For better or for worse, wrestling’s cutthroat decision makers know exactly what they want from their women, and for some that means quite the transformation. Check out these amazing Before They Were Famous photos.

Velvet Sky

Before she became one half of TNA’s Beautiful People, Velvet Sky went by the name Talia Madison. She debuted in 2003 with a look that was at least a decade out of date, and it wouldn’t be until she began teaming with fitness model April Hunter in 2005 that she started to repackage herself. By the time she reached TNA in 2007 Talia had morphed in to quite the sex symbol, and along with a later boob job, she looks nothing like she did in those early days.

Aksana

Before she became the sultry Euro-babe on WWE TV, Aksana (real name Živilė Raudonienė) was a prized bodybuilder, earning two silvers and a bronze at the World Amateur Bodybuilding Championship, and winning the 2009 Arnold Classic Contest. She first entered the contest in 1999 when she was just 17 years old! Prior to debuting in wrestling the Lithuanian shed considerable muscle and underwent breast surgery in order to fit the typical Diva mold.

ODB

ODB has always been one dirty bitch – baammm! – but prior to making a name for herself as a TNA Knockout she reached the top 25 of the original WWE Tough Enough (filmed in late 2000), but wouldn’t appear beyond the first episode. She would go on to sign a developmental, appearing in OVW in 2006 where her current look developed, but WWE didn’t realize the star they had and she was released a year later, only to be snapped up by TNA and allowed to showcase her talent.

AJ Lee

Nawwww – Before she was the certifiably insane AJ Lee, she was April Mendez, a wrestling superfan who cried when she met her idol Lita at a WWF autograph signing.

Christy Hemme

Believe it or not Christy Hemme hasn’t always been a red head. Ahead of her winning entry in to the WWE Diva Search in 2004, Hemme was a budding model and in several of her early shoots she can be seen sporting blonde hair!

More Blasts from the Past

Lita prior to ECW

Jillian Hall pre-WWE

Mickie James as Alexis Laree

Angelina Love as Angel Williams

Melina pre-WWE

Seen any other major transformations in the world of female wrestling? Share them below in the comments section!